But some of the benefits are mismatched. The ability to win contracts for hi-tech equipment for example, is likely to go unused as Pakistan is currently incapable of making any. Also, CERN and Pakistan have mismatched priorities. The Swiss institute is concerned with clues within the tiniest shards of an atom that might reveal the origins of space and time, “the fundamental structure of the universe,” as their mission statement reads. That aim is fundamentally divergent from Pakistan’s fixations — weapons and energy. (The concerns look mundane in comparison, if not less important.) The institute’s and the state’s purposes, then, are not aligned, and for its own end perhaps what Pakistan can learn — or wants to learn — would be limited at best.
The biggest benefit, however, has less to do with the direct, tangible value that comes from the associate membership. Since the beginning, Pakistan has been isolated and shunned for its nuclear ambitions. Whether this isolation was in the form of American sanctions put in place in the ’90s, or the tedious, alarmist use of ‘nuclear-armed’ as an adjective to describe Pakistan in foreign publications, the stigma has persisted. (Pakistan’s refusal to sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty has not helped.) The associate membership may, above all, be an acknowledgement of Pakistan as a legitimate nuclear power that may have a positive role to play in atomic research. That helps mitigate the stigma to no end.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 25th, 2014.
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Has Pakistan eradicated polio ? terrorism ? hunger ? how can it justify spending the money (it doesn't have) on this self aggrandisement ?
Whether this isolation was in the form of American sanctions put in place in the ’90s, or the tedious, alarmist use of ‘nuclear-armed’ as an adjective to describe Pakistan in foreign publications, the stigma has persisted. (Pakistan’s refusal to sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty has not helped.)
Editor left out the part where Pakistan was caught selling nuclear weapon technology to N Korea, Libya and Iran - one of the convenient memory things? Pakistan's negative reputation when it comes to nuclear issues is well documented/deserved regardless of whether Pakistanis choose to ignore it.
While good work is being done at NCP, it is unfair to ignore the only original piece of hardware that came from Pakistan to CERN . This was the laser based position monitoring system for CMS detector. Forty systems designed AND manufactured in Optics Labs are installed at CERN . I had something to do with it. This is in addition to carbon fibber frames (several thousand) for the tracker outer barrel, which were then assembled on a locally designed jig to high precision. They were shipped to Fermikabs for attachments of some key iCs, then sent to CERN , where they were tested individually on an automated system designed by a bright young engineer Farooq, and finally integrated on trays before their installation in the massive CMS system. Still being maintained by some Optics Labs people.
Several feet for the CMS (28 tons each) were welded and assembled by the Pak. Atomic Energy Commision workshops, plus loading trays. These like the RPCs were designed at CERN or Italy, parts being sent to NCP for assembly and testing. NCP has an excellent data node linked to CERN for receiving some data from the experiments. Not enough bandwidth to be really useful. Not enough particle physicists in Pakistan to really make use of CERN .
Congratulation to Pakistan and Pakistani scientists.
@Faisal: That was useful information. Thank you.
The informal scientific co-operation between CERN and Pakistan dates back to the 1960s. Pakistan joins the ranks amongst the 20 member states of CERN. This Cooperation of Pakistan with CERN underlines the importance of scientific research and higher education for economic and technological development for Pakistan. It will also expand their collaborative research activities with foreign universities and institutes.
Pakistan's membership of CERN has many other benefits, such as developments in the field of science and technology will contribute in many other areas such as medicine, homeland security, industry, simulation of cancer treatments, reliability testing of nuclear weapons, food sterilization, nuclear waste transmutation, and scanning of shipping containers are by-products of physics research.
Pakistani physicists have remained actively engaged with CERN for a long time and the associate membership is recognition of their contributions to the Council, cutting edge scientific research and to the peaceful uses of nuclear technology. It is recognition that Pakistan is a responsible nuclear state with adept expertise in using civil nuclear technology for peaceful purposes.
Despite of all the mismatches, associate membership in CERN is an indication that Pakistan has been accepted as a legitimate nuclear power which can made fundamental progress in Atomic research. The divergent interests of the both sides don’t make much difference because Pakistan really has earned this status by its hard work and devotion in this field. This collaboration has a potential to open new horizons of collective work in respective fields. The line of working would be mutually decided by both sides but this membership categorizes Pakistan as a responsible nuclear weapon state.
maybe we can steal some secrets like our father of nuclear bomb did in Netherlands.
Pakistan is the first Asian country and third after Turkey and Serbia to have received the associate membership. CERN would provide increased opportunities for continuation of research in the country. It is a reflection of continuous hardwork and commitment of scientists which actually marked a distinction. This certainly opens horizons of progress and development in many areas which can be used for welfare of the citizens at optimal level. It certainly gives a motivation to made commendable progress. CERN acceptance of Pakistan as member state which will further open new ways for the scientific developments. Pakistani scientists will collaborate with European states in order to understand mysteries of universe.
Great milestone achieved by Pakistan, In fact, Pakistan will have access to prestigious research institution. Besides that Pakistani students can participate in various programs offered by CERN.
Let there be more positive news like this from Pakistan.
"The ability to win contracts for hi-tech equipment for example, is likely to go unused as Pakistan is currently incapable of making any."
Seriously!
Go through this link:
http://www.ncp.edu.pk/cern.php
Resistive Plate Chambers (RPC) Project
Present Areas of Involvement
Manufacturing of mechanical components & Engineering Services Detector Assembly and Testing HRD for Physics Analysis Grid Computing Resistive Plate Chambers (RPC) Project
In the experimental HEP, we are involved in the development, testing and fabrication of 432 Resistive Plate Chambers (RPC) required for the CMS muon detector at CERN. The RPC has an excellent time resolution i.e. of the order of 1-2 nanoseconds and it will be used for the bunch tagging at LHC. At the national level, this project is a joint collaboration of NCP and PAEC, whereas at international level, we have partners from Italy, China, Korea and USA. The RPC is a gaseous detector made using two parallel-plates of bakelite with high resistivity. Each RPC for CMS will be equipped with 96 electronic channels, which will be readout are based on 0.14 micron BiCMOS technology.
In continuation with my previous comment:
The editor should have at least tried to visit NCP website to see how much good work is being done despite lack of resources and general interest in Physics from public.
Here are some useful examples of collaboration results achieved so far in Experimental High Energy Physics, without associate membership:
http://www.ncp.edu.pk/publications/pub-2012-ehep.php
http://www.ncp.edu.pk/publications/pub-2013-ehep.php
And more info is there on NCP's website.
[That aim is fundamentally divergent from Pakistan’s fixations — weapons and energy. (The concerns look mundane in comparison, if not less important.) The institute’s and the state’s purposes, then, are not aligned, and for its own end perhaps what Pakistan can learn — or wants to learn — would be limited at best.]
This is sure one of the most absurd piece of writing, I have ever seen on a subject like this. ET Editor should have done some homework and should have tried to understand that despite some lacking of government attention, there are people especially in civilian sectors who work in areas of particle physics, data analysis, computational physics, experimental particle physics and other related areas.
Trying to show that Pakistan in CERN means access to weapons shows a very weak scientific background even at popular science level. Its like undermining the work of people like Salam, Riazuddin and many others who were inspired by their work. You are probably more interested in increasing your liberal credentials by using words like weapons with CERN membership and casting doubts over the aims and objectives behind all the hard work done by civilian scientists.
Pakistan has enough tech infrastructure and background to develop Nukes and other weapons. If an opportunity has come to share some of the expertise with international community in civilian sectors and in the process gaining some more access to the frontier areas of science dealing with the areas (like: what gives mass to the particles? or what is the nature of dark energy? ) then it should be celebrated instead of casting doubts in the minds of international scientific community about Pakistan's academia especially researchers working in the area.
We should do more work with CERN.